UN declares contraception as a human right

The Current

December 12, 2012

Season 2012,
Episode 300096636

23:27

Citing statistics of tens-of-millions of unwanted pregnancies in the poorest countries, millions of abortions and tens-of-thousands of women dying in childbirth, the UN's Population Fund is asserting that access to family planning and contraceptives is a Universal Human Right. It is a designation that has outraged conservative and religious critics who accuse the UN of colonialism and of misguided policies that will infringe on basic rights and fob western drugs onto unsuspecting women. Proponents argue family planning rights will reduce infant and maternal death, enable women and bring prosperity. Today we take on this debate.